July 10 (Bloomberg) -- European Central Bank Governing
Council member Christian Noyer said renewing purchases of
sovereign debt isn’t the best way for the bank to counter
Europe’s sovereign debt crisis right now.

The key issues for the euro area are to “restore investor
confidence durably” and to break the link between sovereign
risk and bank risk, Noyer, who heads the French central bank,
told reporters in Paris today. The bond program can only “ease
market turbulence temporarily.”

The remarks put the onus of combating record borrowing
costs in Spain and Italy on euro-region member states and
underline the Frankfurt-based ECB’s refusal to bail out
governments even as the debt crisis approaches its third
anniversary. Noyer said governments must move quickly to
implement a June 29 agreement that set out a plan for united
banking supervision and aid to Spanish lenders.

“The crisis management mechanism formally created between
member states must urgently be made fully operational,” Noyer
said. “It is vital to avoid any further deterioration in
sovereign debt market conditions.”

The ECB, which last week cut its benchmark and deposit
rates to record lows, is ready to do more to support the
economy, though policy is “appropriate” for now, Noyer said.

“As has been the case for the past five years, the
Eurosystem stands ready to act within the framework of its
mandate and its competencies,” Noyer said. “But in the current
circumstances, the effectiveness of its action greatly depends
on the decisions concerning the future of the euro area, its
governance and its functioning as well as their actual
implementation.”